A Change of Habits

I have put on weight since starting on my current job about 18 months ago.

It's quite shocking really and I have a few dresses that I can't wear anymore.

That's really saying something because I'm not someone who buys tightly fitted clothes. My dresses are well fitting but usually not tight.

And most of them I bought less than 18 months ago!

So... I really do have to go on a diet because I still want to wear some of those clothes! But I usually suck at diets. I love eating too much... *sheepish smile

For this diet to work, I think I have to be realistic and change my habits rather than just do things differently for a couple of weeks.

So these are just a few things I will be doing from now onwards:

1) Drink a glass of water or eat a fruit before lunch and dinner
2) Climb the steps on my way to work in the subway instead of taking the elevators
3) Stretch when watching TV
4) Cut down on all sweet drinks
5) Eat a lot less carbs (I'm so inspired by Ting and Petunia - I don't think I can do without carbs, but I'm trying to only take brown rice and wholemeal bread)

Hopefully these small steps help! I'd be updating all again with my progress...

Wimbly Lu's Waffles

I have been forgetting to bring my camera along with me during the weekends, which means I don't have pretty photos to show of this new, quaint little place I've found. All photos in this post were taken with my iPhone.

This cafe is pretty near to our place, and a stone's throw away from our church.

I picked Wimbly Lu as a place for tea with a few friends because I couldn't bear driving into town for tea on a Saturday afternoon (the crowds!) and frankly, just couldn't think of any other place.

This place opened very recently - this month or last, I think!

You can't miss the cafe, with its signature red-and-white vintage Beetle outside!

This cafe specialises in chocolates and what I like about it is that it is really very homey - mismatch chairs, extremely old decking, beautiful-but-mismatch plates, red brick walls, glass ceilings that lets in lots of lights and lets you see the rain. It's the kind of place you know you can be comfortable in with a few good friends for the afternoon.

The drinks at Wimbly Lu were nothing to shout about. The desserts were all pretty good though.

The black-out cake my friend ordered looked dry but it was very moist and not-too-sweet. The slice of cake was a real tiny one though. The Husband was very put of by it as he believes that you should always cut 1/8th of the cake to serve. "You can charge more but you can't give less" - is something he strongly believes in.

The Husband ordered Eton Mess, something we have never seen in a menu in Singapore. I thought it would be overwhelmingly sweet but I must say it was really quite good. I'm really impressed with the meringue - crispy on the outside with a marshmellowy center, yet not too sweet at all! The meringue went perfectly well with the whipped cream and very tart raspberry sauce.

The Eton Mess was unexpectedly good

I ordered the waffles with homemade chocolate truffle ice-cream and chocolate sauce, based on recommendations from this blog. I have been having cravings for waffles of late and this was the ANSWER to my cravings. The waffle is pretty light and crispy, not unlike the ones you get at A&W in Batam, but slightly more substantial. The homemade ice-cream looked rather melted and unappetizing but it was surprisingly rich and good!

Good waffles - I'm so glad this place is near my home!

The homemade truffles at Wimbly Lu were good too. Not particularly pretty and refined looking but they tasted good, which is what is important at the end of the day. I tried a few flavours and my favourites are the dark chocolate and baileys truffles.

I like looking at the rain fall on the glass ceilings

They serve good-old root beer float too!

Wimbly Lu
Address: 15-2 Jalan Riang
Tel: +65 6289 1489

Korean Seafood Pancake

Inspired by Dainty Bites, I decided to make some Korean pancakes for dinner tonight. I had some instant pancake mix which I bought from a Korean supermarket, so I didn't follow the reccomended Mark Bittman's recipe.

The pancakes turned out pretty well, I was very pleased with how crispy, yet chewy the pancakes were.

One thing I've learnt about Korean pancakes - it's important to cook them with lots and lots of patience.

I put the non-stick pan on high heat, pour in a couple of tablespoon of oil and when the oil is hot, turn the heat down to medium and ladle in the mixture.

And only when the bottom is nice and brown do I turn it over to the other side. Pressing the pancake down with the back of my spatula helps to make the other side of pancake nice and crispy as well. If the pan isn't oily enough, turn the heat up and add a little oil from around the sides of the pan. (Somehow though, the second side never turns out as pretty as the first side that heats the pan.)

Then keep doing the same for every single pancake. It's a true test of patience, I tell you!

I don't have a pretty picture of the pancake for some reason but 

these were yummy enough for a compliment from my younger brother!